In the aftermath of the devastating implosion of the Titan submersible, authorities are currently grappling with the challenging task of determining who will lead the investigation into this international disaster.
Maritime agencies continue to scour the ocean floor for evidence, delaying the formal launch of the inquiry. Debris from the wreckage has been located approximately 12,500 feet underwater near the Titanic site, which the Titan was en route to explore. The initial search and rescue efforts were led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
Rear Adm. John Mauger of the First Coast Guard District stated on Thursday that while there are numerous questions surrounding the incident, the focus is currently on gathering as much information as possible. However, the responsibility for leading this complex investigation, involving multiple countries, remains unclear.
OceanGate Expeditions, the company that owned and operated the Titan, is based in the United States, but the submersible was registered in the Bahamas. OceanGate’s headquarters in Everett, Washington, has been closed since the Titan’s discovery. Complicating matters further, the Titan’s mother ship, the Polar Prince, hails from Canada, and the personnel on board the submersible represented England, Pakistan, France, and the United States.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported that the U.S. Coast Guard has declared the loss of the Titan a “major marine casualty” and will lead the investigation. The NTSB has joined the inquiry based on information provided by Coast Guard officials. However, the Coast Guard has not confirmed its role in leading the investigation, and the Coast Guard First District in Boston, which would be responsible, has yet to provide details or comment on future operations and plans.
Meanwhile, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada has initiated an investigation into the Polar Prince, the Titan’s support vessel. During the Titan’s journey, the Polar Prince carried seventeen crew members and twenty-four others.
The lack of comprehensive regulations within the realm of deep-sea exploration further complicates the overall investigation process. Deep-sea expeditions are subject to less scrutiny than companies involved in human space launches, highlighting a gap in regulatory oversight.
The Titan was not registered as a U.S. vessel or with international safety agencies, nor did it adhere to the standards set by maritime industry organizations for hull construction.
OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, who was piloting the Titan when it imploded, has previously expressed frustration with regulations that impede innovation. However, experts like Bob Ballard, a member of the team that discovered the Titanic wreck in 1985, assert that the absence of certification from external experts was a crucial factor leading to the submersible’s implosion. Ballard emphasized that previous dives to similar depths had been incident-free and that this was the first unclassified submarine to experience such a catastrophic event.
The timing of the implosion appears to have been determined. Acoustic data analyzed by the Navy revealed an “anomaly” consistent with an implosion or explosion in the vicinity where the vessel was located when communication was lost. However, the data was not initially conclusive, and the Coast Guard continued its search until the submersible’s 96-hour air supply was expected to deplete, extinguishing any hope of finding the crew alive. Debris found approximately 1,600 feet from the Titanic site confirmed the loss.
Condolences and tributes from around the world poured in for those who lost their lives in the implosion, including OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, Pakistani father and son Shahzada Dawood and Suleman Dawood, British adventurer Hamish Harding, and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
The implosion of the Titan has raised the likelihood of numerous lawsuits, although legal filings will be intricate and their success uncertain. Jurisdictional issues pose a challenge for plaintiffs, mirroring the complexities faced by the investigation. Establishing jurisdiction will be a daunting task due to the “regulatory no man’s land” in which the incident occurred, as noted by Steve Flynn, a retired Coast Guard officer and director of Northeastern University’s Global Resilience Institute.
Renowned filmmaker James Cameron, who directed the blockbuster movie “Titanic” and has made multiple dives to the wreck, immediately recognized the gravity of the situation upon learning of the submersible’s loss of navigation and communication. Cameron stated that the subsequent search was merely a formality, as the submersible was located within hours of deploying a remotely operated vehicle capable of reaching the necessary depth.
The extensive multinational and commercial involvement in this oceanic search sets it apart from any other comparable operation. The costs, expected to be in the millions of dollars, will heavily burden the U.S. Coast Guard alone, with contributions from the Canadian Coast Guard, U.S. Navy, and other agencies and private entities. While some entities may seek reimbursement, the U.S. Coast Guard is generally prohibited from collecting reimbursement for search and rescue services under federal law.
According to documents filed with a U.S. District Court in Norfolk, Virginia, OceanGate’s submersible successfully transported at least 46 individuals to the Titanic in 2021 and 2022. However, both former employees and previous passengers have expressed safety concerns.
